LaMancha delivers the dream

BILL O'NEILL

2:48 PM, Dec 9, 2009

Bill O'Neill

It's hard to put your finger on what went wrong with The Naples Players' production of "Crimes of the Heart." The play won a Pulitzer prize. The set is just about perfect. The performances - although there is some distracting age-inappropriate casting - are not what you'd call bad. The actors try hard. Mai Puccio and Bill Bridges, in particular, provide understated and sympathetic performances. Somehow, though, the evening doesn't gel. I was left wondering, as with "The Heidi Chronicles" last year, why the play is so highly regarded.

I have a theory. This play is of a certain genre, not infrequently encountered, that involves eccentric (usually Southern) characters who act in seemingly bizarre ways. I suspect that to make it succeed, those involved must work against the outrageousness. The characters and their foibles should seem, if not normal, then fully human and sympathetic. The performers and the director of this production do not quite get there.

On the other hand, TheatreZone's season-opener, "Man of LaMancha," is very much of a success. I approached it with some trepidation. I'd seen this play the first time around, a hundred years ago in Greenwich Village. As a stagestruck teenager, I was completely taken by it. Would it stand the test of time or would it disappoint, like an old girlfriend re-encountered, whose charms no longer charm?

"Man of LaMancha" holds up well. The play-within-a-play framing device, with Cervantes telling the story of Don Quixote to his prison mates as a distraction, retains its effectiveness, allowing the Quixote story to be telescoped into a short span and a small space without it feeling like a "Cliff Notes" version of a classic work. The music, while generally lovely, is more repetitious in places than I noticed all that time ago, the humor is less humorous, the schmalz is at times a little thicker. Cervantes it's not, and it never has been, but on its own terms, this is an entertaining and ultimately moving musical drama.

TheatreZone's production is up to its high standards. Out-of-towners Jeff McCarthy as Cervantes/Quixote and Larry Alexander as the Padre are better than good. McCarthy should make this role a permanent part of his repertoire. He looks perfect for it and commands the stage as he must. He had a little trouble with his lines in the beginning, as did a couple of other cast members - TheatreZone runs on a notoriously tight rehearsal schedule. But the performance itself is on the money, and when the time comes for the big "Impossible Dream" moment, he delivers the goods. Special mention, too, to local actor Meg Pryor as Aldonza/Dulcinea. Ms. Pryor has performed well in many other Naples area productions. Here she reaches a new level, not only in the way she handles the difficult vocals, but more important, in the way she disappears into the character. It is a showy role, but Ms. Pryor avoids obvious showiness. Good for her, and good for director Mark Danni to have the faith to cast her and, presumably, to help shape her performance.

As often here, the one disappointment is the set. Granted, the space where TheatreZone performs is not adequate for a big musical, but there must be a way to create a more stylish look. It is to the credit of the director and cast that as the evening progresses, one is increasingly drawn into the tale and the background becomes unimportant.